Senior Program Manager, Embedded Government Team Lead

August 21, 2026

Title: Senior Program Manager, Embedded Government Team LeadLocation: Mumbai, IndiaPosition: Full-timeDate Posted: 18 August 2026Application deadline: September 11, 2026, 5 pm IST (applications may be reviewed as they are submitted) Role Overview: PxD is looking for a Senior Program Manager to build and lead an embedded Project Management Unit (PMU) within the Ministry of Agriculture, Government of Maharashtra. You will lead a portfolio of work spanning the use of AI for Agriculture, evidence-based policy support, and scaling of digital technologies to improve the livelihoods and resilience of smallholder farmers across Maharashtra. The PMU exists to provide demand-driven support to the Department, responding to its priorities on AI-enabled decision-making and inclusive service access for farmers, and will work across multiple parallel workstreams spanning technology deployment, data and analytics, and public-sector service delivery. You will build and lead a cross-functional team spanning policy staff, data scientists, technologists, program and research staff. This position is based in Mumbai, with regular engagement and travel to Pune and district-level offices. About PxD: PxD is a rapidly scaling global non-profit that harnesses the power of technology, data science, and behavioral economics to provide targeted information to farmers in low- and middle-income countries. Providing the right information to the right people, in the right way and at the right time, increases incomes, protects the environment, and improves well-being. We are evidence-based: we test our interventions with randomized controlled trials to prove our impact and cost-effectiveness, and to simultaneously learn from and improve our service. Few interventions are as cost-effective as ours. Responsibilities: Stakeholder Management <ul><li>Serve as the government's primary point of contact for the program, building working relationships across the Ministry and an extensive network of technical partners, implementing partners, and PxD teams.</li><li>Establish the PMU's initial presence within government, securing working space, building early relationships with key decision-makers, and setting up the operating rhythms (reporting, steering committee cadence, team processes) that don't yet exist.</li><li>Lead regular review meetings with key government counterparts; manage funder relationships.</li><li>Facilitate government workshops and stakeholder consultations to further the PMU’s mandate.</li></ul> Program Oversight, Delivery and Management <ul><li>Translate government priorities into a coordinated work plan, adjusting as the Department's needs shift.</li><li>Own end-to-end implementation of projects, ensuring delivery against timelines, budgets, and quality standards.</li><li>Monitor project progress, identify implementation risks, and proactively resolve bottlenecks.</li></ul> Monitoring, Learning & Operations <ul><li>Oversee the program's evidence-generation agenda, including experiments designed to test whether specific interventions change outcomes before recommending the government scale them.</li><li>Translate evidence findings into government-facing recommendations that a non-technical audience can act on</li><li>Proactively oversee the PMUs own internal monitoring and reporting, continuously identifying areas for improvement.</li></ul> Grants, Contracts & Partner Management <ul><li>Manage project contracts, grants, and sub-partner relationships.</li><li>Monitor partner performance against agreed deliverables.</li><li>Ensure contractual and donor compliance throughout project implementation.</li><li>Coordinate with finance and operations teams on budgets, procurement, and financial reporting.</li></ul> Team Leadership <ul><li>Supervise, mentor, and develop junior team members, including Manager, Associates and Technical staff.</li><li>Foster a collaborative, high-performing team culture focused on learning and continuous improvement.</li><li>Support recruitment, onboarding, and performance management of team members.</li></ul> Knowledge Management & Organizational Support <ul><li>Support the development of operational toolkits, implementation guides, communication materials, and standard operating procedures.</li><li>Contribute to PxD's institutional knowledge management and cross-country learning.</li><li>Support organizational planning, operational improvements, and other strategic initiatives as required.</li></ul> What You'll Bring: Required <ul><li>Master's degree (or equivalent experience) in Public Policy, Economics, Agriculture, Development Studies, Engineering, Management, Data Science, or another relevant field.</li><li>7–10 years of progressively responsible experience managing complex programs or projects.</li><li>Demonstrated experience managing large, multi-stakeholder projects involving government agencies and external partners.</li><li>Familiarity with AI, digital technologies and its applications</li><li>Strong project management skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities simultaneously.</li><li>Strong stakeholder management and relationship-building abilities.</li><li>Proven experience leading and mentoring teams.</li><li>Experience working with state or national government programs.</li><li>Excellent organizational skills and exceptional attention to detail.</li><li>Preferred</li><li>Experience in agriculture, climate, digital public infrastructure, technology, or international development.</li><li>Familiarity with causal inference.</li><li>Experience working with cross-functional technical, research, and operations teams.</li><li>Comfort operating with significant ambiguity and limited existing infrastructure, having built or launched a new program or team from scratch</li><li>Proficiency in Marathi.</li></ul> How to Apply: To apply, visit the PxD website and submit your CV, cover letter, and screening question responses via the online application form. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until Friday 11 September, 5 pm IST. In line with our values, we evaluate candidates on merit alone, without regard to gender, gender identity, ethnicity, religion, disability, caste, or any other characteristic protected under applicable law. We offer flexible working arrangements to support your wellbeing. Personal data provided is used for recruitment purposes only.

Back to blog

Common Interview Questions And Answers

1. HOW DO YOU PLAN YOUR DAY?

This is what this question poses: When do you focus and start working seriously? What are the hours you work optimally? Are you a night owl? A morning bird? Remote teams can be made up of people working on different shifts and around the world, so you won't necessarily be stuck in the 9-5 schedule if it's not for you...

2. HOW DO YOU USE THE DIFFERENT COMMUNICATION TOOLS IN DIFFERENT SITUATIONS?

When you're working on a remote team, there's no way to chat in the hallway between meetings or catch up on the latest project during an office carpool. Therefore, virtual communication will be absolutely essential to get your work done...

3. WHAT IS "WORKING REMOTE" REALLY FOR YOU?

Many people want to work remotely because of the flexibility it allows. You can work anywhere and at any time of the day...

4. WHAT DO YOU NEED IN YOUR PHYSICAL WORKSPACE TO SUCCEED IN YOUR WORK?

With this question, companies are looking to see what equipment they may need to provide you with and to verify how aware you are of what remote working could mean for you physically and logistically...

5. HOW DO YOU PROCESS INFORMATION?

Several years ago, I was working in a team to plan a big event. My supervisor made us all work as a team before the big day. One of our activities has been to find out how each of us processes information...

6. HOW DO YOU MANAGE THE CALENDAR AND THE PROGRAM? WHICH APPLICATIONS / SYSTEM DO YOU USE?

Or you may receive even more specific questions, such as: What's on your calendar? Do you plan blocks of time to do certain types of work? Do you have an open calendar that everyone can see?...

7. HOW DO YOU ORGANIZE FILES, LINKS, AND TABS ON YOUR COMPUTER?

Just like your schedule, how you track files and other information is very important. After all, everything is digital!...

8. HOW TO PRIORITIZE WORK?

The day I watched Marie Forleo's film separating the important from the urgent, my life changed. Not all remote jobs start fast, but most of them are...

9. HOW DO YOU PREPARE FOR A MEETING AND PREPARE A MEETING? WHAT DO YOU SEE HAPPENING DURING THE MEETING?

Just as communication is essential when working remotely, so is organization. Because you won't have those opportunities in the elevator or a casual conversation in the lunchroom, you should take advantage of the little time you have in a video or phone conference...

10. HOW DO YOU USE TECHNOLOGY ON A DAILY BASIS, IN YOUR WORK AND FOR YOUR PLEASURE?

This is a great question because it shows your comfort level with technology, which is very important for a remote worker because you will be working with technology over time...

DISCLAIMER